Would the Republican Party have more electoral success if it adopted, or tolerated, liberal positions on social issues like gay rights and abortion and emphasized economic conservative positions like cutting or privatizing Social Security?

Liberaltarians predominate among the college-educated elite, they are a minority in the nation as a whole.

That would appeal to “liberaltarians” who are social liberals and economic conservatives. Although liberaltarians predominate among the college-educated elite, they are a minority in the nation as a whole.

The Republican Party needs the votes of social conservatives who oppose cuts to Social Security and Medicare, something that even a majority of self-described “Tea Party” members oppose. The Democratic Party needs the votes of economic populists who have conservative views on abortion, gay marriage and immigration. It makes strategic sense for the Democrats to downplay controversial liberal social policies like publicly funded abortion and amnesty for illegal immigrants and to use the defense of middle-class entitlements as a wedge issue to split the Republican coalition.

Conversely, it makes strategic sense for the Republicans to downplay unpopular conservative economic policies like privatizing Social Security and abolishing Medicare and to use opposition to gay marriage and abortion and enforcement of laws against illegal immigration as wedge issues to split the Democratic coalition.

And it makes sense for both parties to continue to ignore the liberaltarians.